Freshmen: Completing the Application

Choosing a Major

You should apply to a major that interests you, rather than the one you think gives you "the best chance" for admission. We also suggest that you include an alternate-choice major when you apply; we will consider it if you are not admitted in your first-choice major.

Recording Coursework and Grades

Your academic record is the core of your application. It’s important to record all your UC-approved college preparatory coursework—whether taken at a high school or college—completely and accurately. Include courses in which you received "D" or "F" grades even if they were later repeated.

Honors Courses

The honors box on the UC application form is used to designate a course for which an extra grade point is awarded for a grade of C or better. There are four different types of honors courses:

• Advanced Placement (AP).
• International Baccalaureate (IB); honors status only applies to higher-level IB courses.
• College courses (CL); applies only to UC-transferable college courses.
• UC-approved school-designated honors-level courses (HL).

If you attend a California public high school, see your high school’s UC-approved course list for more information about honors courses. Only courses that are listed as honors are eligible to receive an extra grade point. Out-of-state applicants should check the box for both AP and school-designated honors courses. You should mark the honors box (AP, IB, CL, HL) as appropriate for all of the above.

Reporting Foreign Education

When you apply, you must report all foreign course work as it would appear on your foreign academic record. Do not translate foreign grades to U.S. grades or use an evaluation done by a private evaluation company or another high school on your application. Learn more about meeting requirements with your foreign education and reporting your foreign education correctly in the application.

Non-Letter Grades

If your school uses a non-letter grade system, you will need to take some additional steps in completing the application. First, check with your high school counseling office to see if there is a conversion scale to the A-B-C-D-F letter grade system. If a conversion scale does not exist, do not attempt to translate your grades yourself. List the grades exactly as they appear on your transcript, and check the box that indicates your school uses a grading system other than A-B-C-D-F. A UC adviser will review your application and translate these marks accordingly.

Letters of Recommendation and Other Material

Please do not include letters of recommendation, copies of awards, transcripts or samples of your academic or creative work with your application. They will not be reviewed or returned to you.

Writing Your Personal Statement

We use the personal statement to learn more about you as an individual and to understand the experiences, accomplishments and points of view you would bring to the university's undergraduate student body. The personal statement is your opportunity to discuss attributes and experiences that may not be evident through a review of your academic record. The personal statement format requires your response to two short-answer prompts. Learn more about the personal statement format.

Your personal statement should:

• be checked by a teacher, counselor or other adviser for spelling, grammar and clarity.
• provide specific examples of your accomplishments or activities in which you’ve participated.
• provide any relevant information about you that you don’t think is captured elsewhere in the application.

Your personal statement should not:

• exceed the total maximum length of 1,000 words for the two responses.
• be written in the form of a poem, a recipe or any other “creative” format.
• be accompanied by samples of your work, letters of recommendation or other supporting materials.

College Courses Taken While in High School

College courses should be listed in the appropriate academic subject area with the college name listed in parentheses next to the title of the course. Be sure to indicate "CL" in the honors box for all college-level courses. Where to list it:

• If you took college courses during the school year, list the courses in the appropriate subject area under the appropriate term.
• If you took college courses during the summer session before the 9th, 10th, or 11th grade, list the courses in the column for the school year that immediately follows that summer term, using the fall term column to list the grade[s].
• Courses taken during the summer session before the 12th grade should be listed in the spring term column of 11th grade.

Ready to Apply?

You can view the UC online application for admission and scholarships and start preparing your submission as early as October 1 for fall admission. Visit our Apply page today for final tips and to get started!

Check Your Application Status

Have you already applied for admission? Be sure your application is complete. To get personalized information about your admission status, you'll need your UC Davis student ID number to set up a MyAdmissions account.